Project Baby Spider * Peter Romanoff

-03

1 December 2000

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    NATALIA WAS LYING ON her stomach, enjoying the short time she had left to do so. She had her arms under her pillow with her head laying on top of both. It has only been ten days since Natalia was impregnated and five since she was put into isolation. In the extensive amount of free time she now had, Natalia would do simple workouts on the small floor space or draw with the pencils and papers on her shelf. Her favorite time passing activity, however, would be contemplating her life. Now, in no way did she want to die; Natalia just wants to know what's going to happen. When this is all over, what's going to happen to her? Will she get to graduate and do field work? Though, she was more worried about what will happen to her baby. In the small amount of time she's had with the knowledge of her pregnancy, she's grown attached to the fetus inside of her. Granted, it is technically the only other "person" with her nowadays.

Natalia's stomach growled and she sighed. I guess I'll make something. She turned onto her side then her back. She used her elbows to prop herself up and kicked her legs over the side of the bed. Her feet made it to the floor and she stood up. "What do we want to eat tonight?" Natalia mumbled to not only herself, but her stomach too. In the few days of being alone, she's taken up talking to the fetus. Talking to it made her feel less alone than if she only talked to herself. "I'm thinking chicken and rice."

    She walked only a few feet ahead of herself to her small kitchen area. Natalia opened the small fridge and grabbed the chicken, which was folded in brown paper, and put it on the counter. She grabbed a pan from the cabinet below and turn on the dated stove.

Natalia unfolded the brown paper from around the chicken. "I need a knife," she muttered, opening the drawer in which one would be located. She grabbed a random one and yawned. "Should we experiment with this dish too?" she asked, cutting up the chicken. She had limited ingredients, but over the past few days she's incorporated many into different dishes to create something she would consider extravagant. "Never mind, I'm too damn tired to even be doing this." She put the chicken onto the pan and then grabbed a pot from one of the cabinets. "I'll be back," she told the chicken and went to the bathroom to fill the pot up with water; the only sink she had was in the bathroom. Natalia returned to the small kitchen and placed the pot on a second burner that had been heating. She grabbed the salt and pepper and quickly seasoned her chicken and stirred it around for a few seconds. Finally, she bent down and grabbed the rice. She poured just enough for one person.

    As she stirred the rise she thought: I wonder what all the other girls are doing. Natalia changed her focus from the rice to the wall in front of her. I miss them. Thinking about her "sisters" made her eyes water, but she blinked it away. You're weak, Natalia. Get it together. She straightened her posture and inhaled deeply, closing her eyes. She exhaled and then opened her eyes.

    Natalia continued cooking. Her mind wondered from the other girls and back to the child that inhabits her. "I hope they don't do anything too terrible to you. I cannot prevent them from doing anything, but I hope they have some mercy." Natalia sighed. "You're a blessing, you know. You are the only blood family I'll ever get. When I turn eighteen, I can never have another child."

    Once she finished cooking, she plated her single serving. She sat on her bed due to the lack of a table and held her plate to eat. I should ask for a table. Maybe Madam B will allow me a small one for the corner.

    Natalia finished her dinner and stood up to put her plate on the counter. I'll clean everything later, she thought to herself.

    Natalia walked over to her small shelf and grabbed the pointe shoes left for her. She sat on her bed and slid her feet into them, then tied the ribbon around her ankles. She stood up as gracefully as a professional and did a spin.

    Out of everything she has done in the Red Room, ballet was always her favorite. She loved how she can loose herself in the movements and forget about the reality she lives in. Whatever emotions she had built up through the days, she could express them in her grande jetés and pirouettes.

    She hummed a random tune in her head, and danced to it. She let the world disappear, and her feet tell a story, one she couldn't explain in words. The small space restricted her movements, but she made due. She wanted to dance as much as should could before her stomach overtook the view of her legs and feet.

    Natalia didn't know how long she danced. She only stopped when her head started to spin after doing two pirouettes in a row. Natalia sat down on her bed and leaned her head down to look at her stomach. "I hope I can teach you to dance one day."

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EDITED/REWRITTEN
the chapters where Natalia is in isolation will be on the shorter side. there isn't much to really write about, but i do need to make sure some things happen :).

-Nat